Monday, October 11, 2010

Book Review: Immortal Beloved by Cate Tiernan

Pages: 416
Genre: YA Fantasy
Pub. Date: September 7, 2010
My Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars


Goodreads says, "New name, new town, new life. Nastasya has done it too often to count. And there’s no end in sight. Nothing ever really ends... when you’re immortal. But this time is different: Nastasya knows that this new town must hold her salvation—or her death.  Nastasya was born into darkness, and has embraced it her whole life. Four hundred years ago, a tragedy robbed her of her birthright, and she’s been living a lie ever since. Now, four centuries of exploring the depths and limits of dark power has left Nastasya feeling sickened unto death. If she continues down this road, she will end up as a very dark, twisted, evil thing—with unthinkable power. Or she can begin the long, painful road toward light, and reclaim the destiny that others tried to destroy.  They’re rare. You may have never met one, never sat next to one on a plane, never eaten in the same restaurant at the same time. But the Immortals are there. Have always been there. Will always be there. Moving among humans, playing out their own cursed fate. Sometimes subtly, sometimes with huge, sweeping implications for mankind. But no one will ever know. Except you."

Natasya has spend that last several hundred years partying and living the good life with her friends.  After all, why not? She's an immortal.  But after some dark events, she decides to start over at a "rehab" for immortals in a new town run by an acquaintance she encountered many years ago.  Just when she tries to start anew, her past comes back to haunt her.  Cate Tiernan's Immortal Beloved is the start of a new paranormal series that proved to be a new and unique take immortals.  


At first, I had a hard time getting into this novel as I feel it has a slow first half, but once the plot got going, I was hooked.  Natasya is the heroine that I love to root for.  She's independent, strong, and definitely not the type of woman who relies on a man.  Her love interest, Reyn, was captivating as their story isn't a simple one.  It was amazing how Tiernan somehow made me feel revolted one minute about their possible love and the next minute extremely intrigued.  And a little side note: As I was reading, I decided that Reyn is Eric Northman's doppelganger, which I thoroughly enjoyed. ;)


Tiernan incorporates many flashbacks which are used to fill us in on Nastasya's life.  I thought these flashbacks were done really well and were extremely interesting as many of them focused on events from hundreds of years ago.  The flashbacks never sounded contrived or forced; in fact, I felt they spiced up the novel and added to the mystery.  This is also partly due to Tiernan's writing style, which I found to be captivating once I got hooked.  As I admitted before, some parts were slow, but I think it made the story more realistic, because I often complain how authors move things along too quickly in young adult literature and that was not the case here.


I am not sure I will be picking up the second book in the series, Everlasting Dark, which unfortunately doesn't come out until 2012 along with the third book called Everlasting War. I don't know about you, but 2012 seems so far away!  Although I am absolutely looking forward to seeing where Tiernan is going to take us next as there were some interesting twists and turns at the end of Immortal Beloved. I highly recommend this novel to fans of the paranormal genre; you won't be disappointed as Nastasya's story is truly one of a kind. 




5 comments:

  1. Great review! I really like when an author employs flashbacks effectively. They give me so much insight into the characters.

    If the next book doesn't come out till 2012, I may put this on the back burner until 2011. If I really get into a series, I hate the waiting that comes when I really want to know what happens and the next book is light years away from getting published!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I enjoyed this one as well though I completely agree that it started out a bit slow. Reyn made up for it though, I got very involved in their relationship once the story got started and I'm looking forward to the next book. 2012 does seem very far away though, I'll definitely have to re-read before the second one comes out.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I've been looking forward to this one for ages, but only three stars? Hmmmmm... I hope I enjoy it! Great review!

    I will keep Eric Northman in mind when I get around to reading this one! ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  4. I so so loved this book and I really wanted you to love it as much as me. Sounds like you only got part of the way there. I loved the slow melody of the book. I loved how it was more about character and the past and how choices define us. I loved that it wasn't a fast moving plot. So yeah I cannot wait until 2012. I need more from this series. Interesting review hun.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Lit For Lunch- The flashbacks were definitely effective....I hope you do get to read it. Thanks for visiting!

    Jenny- You are sooo right! I will probably have to re-read it as well! Thanks for visiting!

    Leanna- Yeah, it was a good read, but not GREAT for me...if you know what I mean. I enjoyed it and will definitely pick up the next book, but it didn't blow my mind. Thanks for stopping by!

    Becky- you are right- the slow melody of the book was a nice change to a lot of the fast paced novels that are out there now. I'll definitely be reading the sequel right there along with you though! Thanks for visiting!

    ReplyDelete

I really appreciate your comments. Thank you!

 
Design by: Designer Blogs